In Summary

Objective. Initiative intends to establish fast-growing companies and help them growfurther

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By ISMAIL MUSA LADU

Kampala.

The sixth edition of Uganda Top 100 mid-sized companies survey kicked off yesterday with the focus to propel the firms that are doing well into becoming much bigger business entities.Speaking at the launch of the 2014 top mid-sized companies’ survey, the KPMG Senior Manager, Mr Peter Kyambadde, said there will be an emphasis on helping the surveyed top 100 mid-size firms to take their businesses to another level.

Need for growthHe said: “There is need to encourage mid-size companies to grow. We need them to become corporate companies and set example that peers elsewhere can emulate.”According to Mr Richard Walusimbi, the KPMG audit manager, at least three hundred mid-size firms will be surveyed and only 100 will be ranked.However, all the surveyed firms will be taken through the challenges discovered in the course of the survey while at the same time possible professional solutions will be provided. “Most mid-size firms have challenges that rotate around financing, corporate governance and problems identifying right partners—we will communicate these challenges and offer possible answers on how one can move forward,” Mr Walusimbi said. Stanbic Bank head of communication, Mr Fred Kiyingi, said his bank is willing to cash in on the growth and transformation of the top 100 mid-size companies, saying this is why, since the inception of the survey, they have been part of the journey. The assistant general manager of the Insurance Company of East Africa Uganda Limited, Mr Jackson Muli, said the top mid-size companies will need insurance in the course of their operations, something that his firm is ready to provide according to the specific needs of the top mid-size firms. The Monitor Publications marketing manager, Mr Aaron Aguma, said the survey creates a strong network of businesses that the companies can benefit from. This was supported by Ms Jolly Ngabirano, the managing director of Pap Café, who testified that her business is no longer the same after going through the survey.

About top 100 mid-sized companies’ survey

The survey is an initiative of KPMG and the Nation Media Group, represented in Uganda by the Monitor Publications. Stanbic Bank and Insurance Company of East Africa are the main sponsors.It seeks to identify the fastest growing medium sized companies and help by exposing them to financiers, enhance their business skills and link them to possible new partners. Although entry is voluntary, any participating firm should have a turnover range of Shs360 million to Shs25 billion. The firms must also have three- year audited financial records and should not have cross listed on any stock exchange.

Survey goalsAccording to the joint press statement by KPMG and the Monitor Publications, the objectives of the survey include creation of the industry data base, which allows peers to benchmark themselves, highlight the contribution of this segment to policy makers and supporting the mid-sized firms in linking with other service providers that are critical for their growth.Other objectives include encouraging networking and creating platforms that either individually or collectively see the mid-sized firms encourage entrepreneurship.